[10/09/07 - 12:27 PM]2007 American Music Awards Nominees AnnouncedFor the first time in American Music Awards history, winners will be determined by online voting at ama.abc.com (votes will be collected from Oct. 9 to Nov. 1).

[via press release from ABC]

2007 AMERICAN MUSIC AWARDS NOMINEES ANNOUNCED

New Online Voting Procedures Will, for the First Time in American Music Awards History, Allow America to Pick the Winners by Logging on to ama.abc.com

Winners to be Named Live on ABC, Sunday, November 18 at 8:00 p.m., ET

Nominees for the 2007 American Music Awards, produced by dick clark productions, inc., were announced today during a press conference at The Beverly Hills Hotel. Present for the announcement was comedian, writer and talk show host Jimmy Kimmel, who is returning for his fourth time to host the 35th anniversary of the popular awards show. Actress and singer Ashanti and pop rock group the Jonas Brothers were also on hand to announce the list of nominees.

For the first time in American Music Awards history, winners will be determined by online voting at ama.abc.com (votes will be collected from Oct. 9 to Nov. 1). Winners will be announced at the 2007 American Music Awards ceremony, which will be broadcast live on ABC, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 18 (8:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT) from the NOKIA Theatre L.A. LIVE in downtown Los Angeles.

Initial nominees were selected by using ballots containing names compiled from data supplied by the music industry trade publication, Radio & Records and Nielsen Soundscan, which tracks retail music sales. The ballots were then sent to a national sampling of more than 15,000 people based on what type of music they listen to, what they buy and how many albums they purchase per year. The sampling also took into account geographic location, age, sex and ethnic origin. The top three vote getters were determined to be the nominees for this year's American Music Awards.

New Online Voting Procedures

The American Music Awards also announced that for the first time music fans will be able to choose which nominated artists ultimately win the coveted awards. This year members of the public can vote for nominated artists by going online and vote at ama.abc.com. The ama.abc.com website will be active from October 9 through November 1, 2007.

dick clark productions, which was recently acquired by RedZone Capital, came up with the concept to open the voting to the public online after the nominations process was completed when the Company started planning the 35th anniversary edition of the awards show. After examining the show's roots, and how the voting was conducted in the past, the Company's new management decided that the internet provided an ideal way to determine which musical recording artists were truly America's favorite artists in each of the twenty different categories.

"When we acquired the Company, we decided to examine what the American Music Awards was all about. We determined that the show was designed to tap into the views of the record buying public and reward America's most successful and favorite musical acts," said Terry Bateman, CEO of dick clark productions. "The internet allows us a way to bring millions of potential voters into the voting process. Now instead of limiting the voting to thousands of people, millions of people will have the opportunity to vote. It is America's awards show, so why not let the public choose which nominees win?"

The voting process is being conducted in conjunction with ABC and is being overseen by the accounting firm Ernst & Young.

Confirmed Performances and Credits

Larry Klein, producer of the "2007 American Music Awards," announced that Daughtry, Celine Dion, Fergie and Rihanna have confirmed to perform. Louis J. Horvitz is directing. Writers will be Barry Adelman and Fred Bronson. Executive in charge of production is Bob Bardo. Associate producer is Don Harary.

In 1973 Dick Clark created the American Music Awards to pay tribute to popular musicians from various genres of music and to put audiences in touch with the latest phenomena in American music. Nominees and winners are decided by national sales, radio play and by public voting. Since its founding, the AMAs have honored and showcased the talents of some of the biggest names in the music industry. The "2007 American Music Awards" will be broadcast live from Los Angeles on ABC on November 18th at 8:00 p.m., ET/PT.

About dick clark productions, inc.

Founded in 1957, dick clark productions, inc. (dcpi) is a leading independent producer of television programming. dcpi produces perennial hits such as "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve," the American Music Awards, the Golden Globe Awards and Academy of Country Music Awards. dcpi also produces popular weekly television programming, including "So You Think You Can Dance," and owns and maintains one of the world's most unique and extensive entertainment libraries, which includes more than 30 years of "American Bandstand," among other things. For additional information, please visit www.dickclarkproductions.com .